Studio a Dream Come True
Laura Sisco of Montauk knew from the time she was 3 years old that she wanted to spend her life dancing. Now 27, and with a wide range of dance experience, she has opened Creative Edge Studio, a dance school in Montauk.
Before opening the school, Ms. Sisco taught classes in the parish center of St. Therese of Lisieux Catholic Church and the Montauk Playhouse Community Center and in East Hampton at Elements Fitness Studio and the Y.M.C.A. East Hampton RECenter, where she was a dance instructor and camp director for 3 years before going out on her own.
The new studio on Montauk’s Main Street was the former space of Atlantic Beach Realty, but you would never guess it was a real estate office before it was transformed. The space, which is owned by her parents, Dennis and Rosanna Sisco, was totally renovated by her father. The walls are painted a deep purple, with one side lined with elevated ballet bars and the other with floor to ceiling mirrors, which the students, ages 2 and up, love.
“They couldn’t see themselves dance before. They love watching themselves and it teaches them discipline, respect, and preparedness,” she said, explaining that watching themselves move teaches the students proper form. She also teaches classes in East Hampton at Elements Fitness.
When she was younger, a lot of naysayers told her she could never make a living from dance, but, she said, there was never a question in her mind that she could. And with her parents support, driving her to classes and cheering her on, and the passion she had for it, “I knew I could do it. If you work hard enough it can happen,” she said.
After graduating from the Montauk School and East Hampton High School, she attended Adelphi University, graduating in 2010 with a bachelor of fine arts degree in dance.
She is a co-founder of the nonprofit East End Young Artists Initiative and has choreographed many of its musical productions, including its annual “Best of Broadway.” At East Hampton High School, she directed the musical “Rent” two weeks ago, and has also choreographed such productions as “42nd Street,” “Mame,” “Hello, Dolly,” and “Grease.”
Creative Edge will produce two recitals a year, one in the spring and the other at Christmas. The first was held in December at East Hampton High School. A schedule of upcoming classes and events is listed on Ms. Sisco’s website, creativeedgedance.com.